A Not So Merry Christmas
by DixonVixen93
Summary: Post Series: On Christmas Eve, Orwell's life is threatened by someone she thought to be trustworthy. Can Vince come to her rescue before it's too late? Vince/Orwell


**Hey all, tired of my name appearing everywhere? Well too bad! I have stories to tell!**

**Speaking of which, this is my second horror story. My first was a complete strip tease, but I've decided to not go half cocked on this one. It will be told about three years post series. **

_**A Not So Merry Christmas**_

_Orwell was determined to get out of there. She had dodged the psychotic bastard numerous times, just by crawling out of his way. The blogger used her elbows to scoot her way through her unfamiliar surroundings, not able to stand on her right leg. The brand new white dress she wore was completely covered in blood, dirt, and sweat. _

_There was no easy way out with a broken leg. If she was to limp, that would only slow her down; of course, a hobble was faster than a crawl. The brunette forced her body upright, biting down forcibly on her lower lip to keep from screaming out in pain. Her body ached all over. Bruises in places she never knew could get bruised. Cuts and scrapes all across her face, torso, arms and legs. She was hungry and petrified. Where was Vince when she needed him?_

_It was almost scary to think of where life could take you. Orwell never thought about her future that often, she especially never thought of Christmas spent in pure danger._

_The blogger hobbled with all of her pressure on her left leg and hip. She stopped in mid-stride to take in the dark room. It was an office of some sorts. Papers were scattered about, blood covering them all to the point where they were completely illegible. Her heart stopped as she saw a phone, she hurried over to it and picked it up from its cradle. The brunette's face fell as she realized the cord was cut…_

_Orwell leaned against the office desk, her hips screaming at her in pain. A bright light came through the office window, almost like high beams from a vehicle. She picked her head up, eyes growing wide at the sight of Vince's truck._

_He'd come for her! She could finally go home and… oh no…. The blogger opened her mouth to scream, but instantly covered her mouth. Orwell watched in horror as her kidnapper headed straight for her partner, a shotgun in hand._

-0-

By the year 2014, Palm City was back to normal, (as normal as it _could _be anyway). Peter Fleming was behind bars, with no chance of parole or release, for all of Chess' murders. Vince's name was clear, but who he _wasn't _clear with was his wife. Dana and the vigilante had tried numerous marriage counseling sessions, but none of it ever worked. By mid 2012, they divorced. Since then, both of them have moved on romantically. Vince leaned towards his best friend, Orwell, for comfort, whereas Dana leaned towards someone she knew thought of loving.

The blogger, and now co-CEO of ARK Corporation, embraced her relationship with the vigilante with open arms. The two fell in love rather quickly and had been together ever since.

-0-

"Vince," Orwell began with a light chuckle, her pretty face lit up by a billion watt smile. "You don't have to stay with me, you know."

"Oh I know," he began with a grin of his own, lifting his girlfriend onto her desktop in ARK Towers. He placed his hands on either side of the brunette's hips and slowly began a kiss with her.

The blogger grinned into her boyfriend's lips. She took in a breath as they broke apart, still at a close proximity. "You think you're getting lucky right here, do you?"

"Why would I suggest something like that in a work place?" Vince kissed the brunette again. "Orwell, I'm surprised you would think so low of your own boyfriend."

"Ssh… too much talk," the blogger whispered. "Not enough kissing." She grinned at Vince, wrapping her arms around his neck.

The vigilante pressed his lips against hers again, deepening their kiss more than before.

Unfortunately for the couple, their office wasn't very private. It wasn't anything for a secretary to barge in unannounced. Famous for coming in at the wrong time was her counterpart Parker Lee, her co-CEO of ARK.

Vince never really liked the guy, this might have been part of the reason why. When a cold draft of air shifted into the room, he had just unbuttoned the top two buttons of his girlfriend's blouse. The vigilante jerked his head back, a frown on his face as Parker stepped into the room.

Orwell sighed into her boyfriend's chest as she buttoned up her top. "We need to learn to lock that after office hours," she murmured under her breath.

Parker was a tall honey blonde with piercing hazel eyes. Apparently he was one of nephews of one of the former ARK employees. He had a habit of coming into places where he wasn't wanted. He was… odd that way.

The blogger pulled herself upright, leaning against her desk with an arm crossed stance. "May I help you, Parker?"

"Yeah, don't you know what the word _knocking _means?" Vince sneered, leaning on the corner of his girlfriend's desk.

"Don't you know what the word _bedroom _means?" Parker spat back at his employee.

Orwell sighed and held a hand up to her boyfriend and counterpart. "Enough, you two," she sighed at the beginnings of a migraine. The blogger spoke to Parker, "Now, seriously, what did you want?"

"I just wanted to see if you were still around," he shrugged.

"Why? It's Christmas Eve, Parker. We _aren't _working overtime," the brunette began with a frown.

"Well I know that. I'm just not in the biggest hurry to head home," Parker gave another shrug again, tracing his shoe around the hardwood flooring.

Orwell raised an eyebrow. "Aren't your wife and daughter expecting you home soon?"

"They're going to spend Christmas with the family up in Washington this year. I didn't really wanna go," the co-CEO murmured under his breath.

"I'm sorry to hear that," the brunette paused to take her boyfriend by the hand. "Well, have a Merry Christmas anyways," she offered her counterpart a smile before dropping Vince's hand long enough to place her pearl white sweater over the matching dress.

Parker watched his counterpart with a lopsided smile. "You too." He continued to watch as Vince helped her slip on a much heavier coat before wrapping his arm around her.

Orwell grabbed her purse off of her desk, forgetting all about her cell phone.

The co-CEO of ARK grinned rather sadistically once the door was shut. He grabbed the brunette's cell phone and stuck it in a pocket inside of his brown blazer.

Once the blogger and her boyfriend walked out of the ARK building hand-in-hand, snowflakes fell onto their heads.

By the time Vince helped his girlfriend into the truck, she had a highlight of white in her hair from the snow. He grinned at the brunette. "Looks good on you, gorgeous."

"Mhm. Let's go home, it's freezing out here," Orwell spoke against her chattering teeth.

"Want me to start a fire when we get home? It's a rare excuse to use our fireplace," the vigilante leaned forward to place a kiss on his girlfriend's lips.

"That sounds good, now come on, I'd rather not become an Orwell-ice sickle," the blogger grinned lightly.

Vince nodded and shut the passenger truck door. He walked around to the other side and hoisted himself up. By the time he started up the ignition, he noticed his girlfriend fiddling around for something in her pockets.

"Something wrong, gorgeous?" the vigilante asked in concern.

"Hmm? Oh, I just can't find my phone. I must have left it in the office," Orwell sighed, reaching for her purse that sat on the floor board.

"Do you really need your phone?" Vince asked.

The blogger passed him a pointed look. "Of course I do. Mother will freak out if we miss her Christmas Eve call."

The vigilante sighed. "Alright," he offered her a little grin. "Want me to go with you?"

Orwell placed her keys in the palm of her hands and set her purse back on the floorboard. "No thanks, sweetie," the blogger leaned forward to kiss her boyfriend, smiling against his lips. "You just stay here and keep the truck warm."

Vince supported the brunette's chin in the palm of his hands as they kissed again. "I love you," he grinned.

"Love you too," Orwell tapped her finger against his lips. "I won't be gone long," she began in a whisper.

The vigilante watched his girlfriend shut the passenger door and endured the cold winter weather. Once she vanished from sight, he dug something out of his coat pocket. It was a black velvet laced box. A smile etched itself across his face as he opened the box. A single diamond ring lay nestled inside, sparkling against the windshield of his truck.

Vince marveled at the ring once more before closing the box and shoving it back in his pocket. He sighed contentedly. The vigilante was going to ask his girlfriend to marry him tonight. It took him a few months to decide if it was really what he wanted, but now that he had the ring in his possession, he wouldn't rethink it for the world.

A few moments later, the vigilante realized that this girlfriend had been gone for _way _too long. She always kept her phone right beside a picture of the two of them. There was no way she could miss it. Worriedly, Vince stopped the truck, clipped his keys to a belt loop and climbed out. If Parker had anything to do with this, boss or not, he had another thing coming. Did the vigilante mention there was just _something _about him that he just couldn't stand?

-0-

Orwell would have to agree with her boyfriend about Parker, if she could ever see him again, that was. On her way to get her cell phone, her counterpart called her over to his car. He had made some stupid excuse about needing her help with something… Well, that was _definitely _the last time she ever helped out a coworker like that again.

The blogger had no idea where she was. What she did know was that her headache had gotten ten times worse. The brunette went to rub the back of her head, only to come back with blood on her fingertips.

So, obviously, Orwell mused, Parker was a psychotic maniac who had hit her on the back of the head and knocked her out cold. She groaned; God knew how long she'd been out like that. The blogger sat up, her body shivering slightly. Once she looked down at her attire, she jumped back at her _lack _of it. All she had on was her pearl white dress. And even _that _had blood on it. That dress was an early birthday present from her boyfriend. She had only worn it just this once, and she had already ruined it.

With another groan, she took a look around the room she was in. It was a crowded, dimly lit office. Doors on either end of the room, and a huge window by the office desk. A feeling of hope rushed through her as she took in the room. Maybe this was a sign that she would be okay…

Orwell got up from where she lay on the floor, but instantly stopped once she felt something tug at her feet. She looked behind her, staring back with her mouth hung agape. Were those _chains _wrapped around her ankles? Okay, this wasn't funny. You do _not _play a game like this with a pregnant girl. (Vince had no idea, she had actually found out earlier that morning. The brunette was just waiting for the perfect time to tell him.)

The blogger dragged her shackled feet along with her as far as they would go. She leaned against the office desk, stretching her arm to reach for the phone.

"What are you doing?" came from behind her.

The pregnant brunette spun around to face Parker with wide eyes. "What am I doing? I'm trying to figure out where the hell I am!"

He just grinned, walking over to his counterpart. "You're a really pretty girl, Jamie. Powerful too." Parker stopped when his toes were touching the blogger's. He stared down at her, smugly.

"Still doesn't answer my question! Why am I bleeding, and shackled up to a chair? I thought you wanted me to help you with something!" Orwell yelled at the top of her lungs, hoping to God that they were around neighbors of some sort.

"You are already helping me, Jamie. I just need a friend for Christmas," Parker began, placing a hand on her back.

"Don't you _dare _touch me!" the blogger slapped her counterpart across his face. "How can I be a friend to a kidnapper?"

The co-CEO wrapped his arm around the brunette, tossing her down onto the chair she was shackled to.

"What are you _doing_?" Orwell cried as he handcuffed her hands to the bars on the back of the chair.

"I'm making sure you don't run away, my friend," Parker grinned down at the pregnant blogger.

"Why? Where are you going?" the brunette questioned roughly.

He dug Orwell's cell phone out of his coat pocket, waving it around in her face. "Your honey is going to be looking for you. I have to go play it off."

"If you hurt him-"

Parker laughed, setting the blogger's cell phone out of her reach. "Are you threatening me?" He slapped the brunette hard enough to draw blood inside her mouth. "You're the one tied up to the chair… my friend," the co-CEO grabbed a rag off of the table and stuffed it inside the blogger's bloody mouth.

Orwell felt tears build up inside her eyes as her co-worker walked away from her. She was so lost. She needed her Vince.

***The Cape***

Vince had spent the evening frantically searching for his girlfriend. He watched the security videos over and over again, but he never even saw Orwell go inside their office. She was just _gone_.

Late Christmas Eve night, Parker came back to ARK, acting like he knew nothing. When he came up on his employee, the vigilante had dosed off at his desk.

The co-CEO walked over to Vince and patted his shoulder. "Hey, Vince, wake up," he began.

The vigilante jolted awake, rubbing his eyes groggily. As his eyes became adjusted to the room, he frowned at his employer. "Parker, have you… have you seen Jamie?"

"Jamie? No, I don't believe I have," Parker said in an innocent voice. "Why?"

Vince narrowed his eyes at the co-CEO. "She came back here to get her cell phone, and I never saw her come back."

"Maybe something came up?" the other man grinned lightly. "I'm sure she's alright."

"What could have come up? She _always _tells me when something's up," the vigilante leaned against his desk, running a hand through his tousled hair.

"Do you _really _know her all that well? You think you do, but she is a Fleming, after all," Parker spoke, looking down at his employee.

Vince sat up, annoyance on his face. "What are you trying to say? That my girlfriend just _left _me on Christmas Eve?" he scoffed. "You're out of your friggen' mind."

"I'm out of my mind? I'm not the one whose chasing after someone that doesn't want me," the other man began, crossing his arms against his chest.

The vigilante scowled at the co-CEO. "I think I would know my own girlfriend." To keep himself grounded, he grabbed a pen that was nearby, nervously contracting and retracting it against his desk.

"Do you?" Parker smirked. "I'm with her while you and the other cops are on call. I _hear _what she has to say about you."

Vince clenched his jaw, grinding his teeth together in anger. He knew this guy was just trying to get him to leave his girlfriend; it wasn't rocket science to know that Parker had a creepy crush on Orwell.

"And I'm with her when you're not. We _live _together," the vigilante smirked. "Sleep together. Everything you don't get to do."

"Well, if you two are that close, then why don't you call her? See where she's at," Parker spoke with a sick grin, slowly losing his calm.

The vigilante made a disgruntled noise as he averted his eyes from his employer. He pulled his cell phone from a pocket, accidentally taking the engagement ring box out as well.

The co-CEO of ARK scowled at the velvet box. "What's that?" he asked.

"What?" Vince did a double take back to the other man. "Oh," the vigilante paused, strumming a thumb across the box with a smile. "I was going to propose tonight."

Parker balled a fist up, stabbing his palm with a fingernail. He relaxed himself a bit before responding. "I see, well how unfortunate that she left you, isn't it?"

The vigilante sighed and stuffed the box back into his pocket. He looked down as he dialed the number he knew by heart. "She did _not _leave me."

The other man stood with a self-satisfied smirk in place. There was no way Orwell would pick up her phone at that rate. If she did, that would be more work for him when he got back home.

Vince listened to the rings on the other end of the phone, his heart dropping as they went on and on. The vigilante felt a twinge of hope as Orwell's voice began. "Orwell?" Then his face fell. It was just her voicemail.

Parker took in his employee's sad expression. "Why the glum face, Vince?"

"She didn't answer," He began distractedly.

"She _didn't_?" the other man asked in pseudo-shock..

Vince hung his head down and sighed. "Are you sure you haven't seen her?"

"The last time I saw her, she was leaving with you," Parker lied.

The vigilante frowned at his employer. "Alright," he murmured.

"Sorry I couldn't be any more help. Maybe you'll hear from her soon. Now, if you'll excuse me," the co-CEO slipped out of the room as covertly as possible, leaving Vince to sulk to himself.

Vince picked his head up and groaned in aggravation. Sometimes he just wanted to smack that guy in the head. First he claimed that Orwell left him, and then apologized for not being any help? Seriously… doesn't he seem a tad….. Then it hit him. That man had all of the characteristics of being a psycho.

The vigilante had spent many nights watching those late night horror movies with Orwell. He had never thought any of them would actually come back to haunt him. Parker was a conniving, power hungry maniac and, for whatever reason, he had kidnapped his girlfriend.

Vince turned back to the computer on his desk and filtered through the other security videos, looking for any sort of evidence that Orwell was snatched outside of ARK.

Luckily for the vigilante, he soon found exactly was he was looking for. He skipped through the normal parts of the video, stopping it when his girlfriend appeared on the screen. Vince smiled a bit as he watched her make her way to the building. Though, she stopped rather quickly and turned to her right. That was when Parker came into view. The vigilante turned the audio up and listened in to what the honey blonde had to say.

He needed help? With what? The vigilante mused, shaking his head.

Orwell followed Parker around to the back of his van, to which he opened it up. Vince got up from his chair when he saw his employer grab something from the trunk. The blogger leaned into the van to look for something and was instantly hit in the head.

The vigilante turned off the monitor and grabbed his coat from the chair before him. "Hang on Orwell, I'm coming for you gorgeous," he murmured to himself as he rushed out of his office.

***The Cape***

Orwell hissed at the light shining into her eyes from the window across from her. She knew that her psycho counterpart was just outside the window, moments away from barging inside. _Well those were the shortest twenty minutes of my life_, the pregnant blogger mused.

She watched as her kidnapper walked past the window, whistling a little Christmas tune. Her lungs took in a staggered breath once he was out of sight. A millisecond later, the brunette heard the door knob rattle behind her.

The blogger turned her head at the sound of the door knob. Tears built up in her eyes as the door opened, a whistling Parker on the opposite end.

"Well, you don't have to worry about Vince anymore," he began, a satisfied smirk in place.

Orwell stared up at her counterpart as he stepped closer to her, taking the gag out of her mouth. The blogger's body shook with a sob. "What do you mean I don't need to worry about him? What did you do to him?"

Parker walked away from the pregnant brunette, heading straight for his office desk where a single radio sat next to the phone. He grinned and turned it on, tuning it into the Christmas music station.

The blogger stared back at her counterpart like he was out of his mind. "Why did you take me away from him?"

The co-CEO slammed his hands against the desktop, fingertips turning pure white from lack of circulation. "Is that all you can damn talk about? Huh? I needed a friend here and all you want to talk about is _your_ stupid relationship!"

Orwell blinked back at him with teary eyes. "You didn't need to chain me up, Parker. Or gag me. I'm…" she paused, not really sure if she should explain just how vulnerable she is.

"You never would have stayed, would you?" Parker pressed further, walking over to the brunette again.

"No. I'd be celebrating Christmas Eve with my boyfriend right now," the blogger began, a sad smile in place.

Her counterpart grabbed the brunette by the hair, yanking her head back to look at him. "I thought you were better than that, Jamie! I thought you were better than your father."

Orwell yelped out in pain as her captor let go of her roots. "How _dare _you bring my father into this!"

"Prove to me that you're not being selfish. You want to go home to your boyfriend, leaving me behind. Well what about me? I've been here for you when Vince hasn't!" Parker yelled back at the pregnant blogger.

"I _want _to keep my baby safe! Is that selfless enough for you, Parker?" The brunette began, tears building up in her eyes again.

The psychotic CEO was taken aback by what his partner had said. "Baby? What baby?"

"I'm six weeks pregnant," Orwell began in a whisper. She tried to find the courage in her voice to speak louder, but it was rendered useless.

Parker's heart almost sank. For a moment, he thought of his own daughter. He stared back at his captive. Could he really inflict anymore pain on her, knowing her condition?

The brunette stared back with wide eyes, preparing for the worse. What she had not been prepared for, was him walking out of the room without another word. Orwell took in a deep breath and hung her head down, letting out a cry.

Had her baby just saved the both of their lives?

Orwell took in a shaky breath and picked her head up to look around the room. She only had a little window of time to get out of there without causing much attention to herself. It was a stretch, seeing how she was handcuffed to a chair and shackled to its legs. Though, it was a stretch she was willing to take.

Without much of a plan in mind, the pregnant blogger began to try to free herself. Fortunately, she had watched one too many horror movies through her twenty-one years of life. Not that it would help her much to know the escape route of a fictitious movie character, but hey, at least it was _something _to go on. _Just you know, don't be an idiot about it, _Orwell griped to herself.

She began to pull her right hand out of its cuff. The blogger bit down on her lip, a muffled moan passing through her lips as she felt her skin start to tear. Tears dripped down her cheeks as she took in a sharp breath. When she finally freed herself from one cuff, Orwell felt the urge to gag at her hand. It was bleeding profusely; a flap of broken skin covering most of the blood.

The pregnant blogger hissed out in pain as she tried to ease her left hand out of the cuff. Another cry came from the brunette when she finally pressed her hand tightly to her chest. She looked around in a panic, thinking she made too much noise. Orwell almost sighed in relief when Parker was nowhere to be seen.

Now she had two choices, she could endure the same pain with her legs, or she could find something to free herself with. Wait, didn't she have a bobby pin holding up a part of her hair? The brunette raised the least battered hand to grasp the pin in her hair. She pulled it out, brown tendrils falling in place with the others. Orwell bent down and immediately went to work with the sharpest point of the pin. It wasn't her usual lock pick, but this would just have to do.

And it did. She let out a sigh of relief when the chains collapsed against each other. The pregnant brunette rose to her feet, a woozy feeling overcoming her as all the blood rushed through her body. Orwell looked around, trying to figure just where she was at. It was likely Parker's home. No one ever knew exactly _where _Parker lived, and this was probably why.

The pregnant brunette clutched at her stomach as she made her way for the front door. It was a stretch, she knew it. Really though, what else could she do? Wait for Parker to find her out of her cuffs and chains? No thank you, the brunette mused.

She bit down on her bottom lip rather nervously, reaching out for the door knob.

"Jamie, where do you think _you're _going?"

Orwell clenched a fist, whining at how painful that was. "What does it look like I'm doing?" she snapped at Parker, who was closing in on her.

"It looks like you're escaping. But you wouldn't do that, would you Jamie? You're not selfish like that," Parker began, grabbing the brunette by the arm.

The pregnant brunette cried out as he ran a finger across her battered hand.

"See, you shouldn't have tried to escape me. Your little hands would still be pretty, not stained with splotches of red and brown," the psychotic CEO began, meeting with his coworker's watery brown eyes.

"I'm sorry, Parker. I just don't feel safe," Orwell paused, motioning to her body. "But, really, who can blame me! You've tied me up, gagged me, abused me," she then dropped her tone to a murmur. "Some Christmas Eve…"

Parker grabbed the blogger's chin, jerking her closer to him. "I tried to be good to you! I tried, but you just wouldn't listen."

"You're holding me hostage. Yes, you're really being good to me," the brunette replied quite dryly.

The psychotic CEO didn't give himself much time to take in what his coworker had just said. He just scooped her into his arms and threw the pregnant blogger blindly.

Orwell fell to the ground, her body sliding to the office desk, the brunette's head slamming against the leg. Papers from the desk scattered to the floor, picking up the blood that trickled down her face.

The brunette blogger tried to rise to her feet, only to fall back down with a sharp yelp. She breathed in, quickly taking in her right leg that was just laying there lifelessly.

By the time Orwell looked up at Parker, he was already coming closer to her. The brunette dragged her foot beside her as she hobbled past him. The psychotic CEO tried to grab Orwell's arm, but the pregnant blogger dodged him every time.

Orwell cried at the pain shooting through her hip, but that didn't keep her from hobbling down the hallway. She frantically searched for any type of a getaway. Windows, doors, whatever, she just needed to get the hell out of there.

The brunette pulled herself into a storage room, pressing herself thin against the door, waiting for Parker to pass her by.

The louder his footsteps were, the louder Orwell's heart pounded.

Parker stopped in the middle of the hallway, his eyes darting around it. "I know you're hiding from me, Jamie. Just think of how happy I can make you. The baby doesn't have to know its real father. Don't let me be alone, Jamie."

The blogger bit down on her bottom lip, tears falling from her eyes. Why couldn't she just be at home with her boyfriend right now? There was a reason why she didn't trust just anyone; now she wondered just what made her guard go down. Not everyone was like Vince. She could be open with him because he would never harm her.

Years ago, Orwell lost her mother in a house fire. Her father did everything in his power to get her the help she needed, but the burns were too severe. Ever since then, the blogger never wanted to get close to anyone. Though, when she fell in love with Vince, everything changed. She felt as though her life was changing for the better. The pregnant blogger trusted her family, boyfriend, and coworkers; anyone not in those categories had to work hard to earn her trust.

Now she was even regretting that…

"Jamie… if you promise to not run away, I'll make your stay worthwhile. You'll get everything you ever wanted and _then _some," Parker inched down the hallway, peeking in every door he passed.

Orwell kept a firm hand clutched over her mouth; she knew that the next room would be the storage room. She took in a quiet breath through the spaces between her fingers.

As he came up to the doorframe, police sirens were heard from outside. Parker cursed under his breath, storming down the hallway to the room on the very end. He reached blindly for his trusty shotgun and left the room.

The blogger had no idea what was going on. She could only bet that Vince had something to do with the sirens outside. Orwell stared down at the doorway, waiting for Parker to go by. When he did, her heart dropped, especially when she saw the shotgun firmly placed in his hands.

She waited for the front door to slam shut before hobbling out of the storage room. Mustering all of the strength she could, Orwell made her way down the hallway, entering the office room once again. She let out a sharp cry from pure exhaustion. She wanted out, and she wanted out _now_. The blogger slowly felt her body give up on her. She fell to the ground, straight on her stomach.

Orwell was determined to get out of there. She had dodged the psychotic bastard numerous times, just by staying out of his reach.. The blogger used her elbows to scoot her way through her unfamiliar surroundings, not able to stand on her right leg. The brand new white dress she wore was completely covered in blood, dirt, and sweat.

There was no easy way out with a broken leg. If she was to limp, that would only slow her down; of course, a hobble was faster than a crawl. The brunette forced her body upright, biting down forcibly on her lower lip to keep from screaming out in pain. Her body ached all over. Bruises in places she never knew could get bruised. Cuts and scrapes all across her face, torso, arms and legs. She was hungry and petrified. Where was Vince when she needed him?

It was almost scary to think of where life could take you. Orwell never thought about her future that often, she especially never thought of Christmas spent in pure danger.

The blogger hobbled with all of her pressure on her left leg and hip. She stopped in mid-stride to take in the dark room. Papers were scattered about, blood covering them all to the point where they were completely illegible. Her heart stopped as she saw the phone, she hurried over to it and picked it up from its cradle. The brunette's face fell as she realized the cord was cut…

Orwell leaned against the office desk, her hips screaming at her in pain. A bright light came through the office window, almost like high beams from a vehicle. She picked her head up, eyes growing wide at the sight of Vince's truck amongst the other police cars.

He'd come for her! She could finally go home and… oh no…. The blogger opened her mouth to scream, but instantly covered her mouth. Orwell watched in horror as her kidnapper headed straight for her partner, a shotgun in hand.

"I have to do something," Orwell murmured to herself. But what could she do? Weak and pregnant wasn't a good combination. She looked around, remembering when Parker went into the room at the end of hallway, coming out with a shotgun. It was now or never, the blogger thought. She pushed her weak self through the room, whimpering down the hallway.

As she got to the halfway down the hall, she felt a steady drip of blood coming from her legs. The pregnant brunette looked down at her feet, her flushed face turning colorless at the streak of blood she was leaving behind.

"No… no…. no…" Orwell murmured to herself, clutching at her stomach. "Please, just hang in there. Mom will get you out of this mess, alright?"

Even though she shouldn't, the blogger hobbled on, leaning against the wall for security. She entered the room at the end of the hallway, feeling around for a light switch. When she flicked it on, the room came to life with light.

It was obviously Parker's bedroom. An under kept bedroom at that, Orwell mused. The bed was a pigsty. The sheets were matted up; piles upon piles of things stacked against the side of the bed. It was a wonder how anyone slept in there!

The blogger tore her eyes away from the bed and hobbled over to the gun cabinet. She opened the glass door and picked up a handgun. Orwell cocked the gun back to make sure it was loaded, sighing to herself. She had never really used a gun before. A tazer for sure; real guns, not so much. This was her only mechanism of defense. Her body was too weak to fight back, and she wasn't doing anything else that could cause harm to her baby.

Orwell kept the gun pressed to her hip and dragged her right foot behind her, not able to hop on her left leg much anymore. She turned off the light with a battered hand, scuffing against the floorboard to get out of that house.

Once she was able to open the front door, she heard about six different guns cock back simultaneously. The pregnant brunette lifted her head up, her vision making everything double.

"Orwell, oh my God!" she heard Vince call out to her. The blogger leaned against the side of the house, so close to crying out for her boyfriend.

The next thing she knew, she had two very strong arms wrapped around her waist, hugging her tightly and whimpering into her ear.

Orwell smiled weakly, pressing her face into her boyfriend's shoulder. She didn't need to look up at him to know that it was Vince.

"Oh my God, I was so worried about you," the vigilante lifted her chin up, kissing her gently. He took in her blistered hands, her scarred face and body… even her bloody legs.

The pregnant blogger looked up at Vince, frowning at the tears in his eyes. "Sweetie, don't cry, okay?"

Vince pressed his girlfriend against his chest protectively but gently. He turned towards the other ARK troops, watching as they handcuff Parker against the police car.

"They're taking him away, Orwell. He can't hurt you anymore," the vigilante whispered down at his girlfriend, kissing her again. It was pretty clear that she was in shock. Vince just waited for her to finally break down; it would only be a matter of time.

Orwell stared back at Parker, trembling into her boyfriend's arms as the psychotic CEO of ARK was tossed into the car.

Two of the troops got into the driver's and passenger's seats of the car, whereas the third walked over to Vince and Orwell.

"Chief," he began, looking back at the car. "We'll take care of it. Take Miss Fleming home."

"Thanks, man," Vince took a deep breath, smiling down at his girlfriend. "I'll be there for her."

"I know you will," the older troop gave him a light salute before retreating back to the car.

The sound of the engine starting didn't even phase Orwell, but what did was the sirens of the police car. She held tightly onto Vince, trembling violently in his arms.

Vince frowned down at her sadly. "Ssh, baby, it's me. I've got you." He took off his heavy coat and draped it across Orwell's shoulders.

The pregnant blogger sobbed into her boyfriend's shoulder blade. "Vince, I'm _really _scared."

"I'm taking you to the hospital, okay?" the vigilante whispered into her hair before gently lifting her into his arms.

Orwell tightly wrapped her arms around Vince's neck, still whimpering to herself.

-0-

The last thing the pregnant brunette remembered was closing her eyes. She was safe in Vince's arms. However, when she opened her eyes to unfamiliar surroundings, Orwell had flashbacks of being tied up in a chair again.

She felt someone touch her arm, to which she cried, "Get off of me!"

"Orwell, it's just Vince. Okay?" her boyfriend called out coolly.

"Vince? It's really you?" Orwell whimpered, her face relaxing some.

"I'm right here," Vince wrapped his arms around the blogger, hugging her very gently.

The brunette let out a weak sob. She clung onto her boyfriend for as long as she could. "Where are we?"

"You're in the hospital," the vigilante sat back down at the chair he had next to the bed, still cradling his girlfriend's hand.

"Am I alright?" Orwell asked, tears spilling from her eyes. She was almost afraid to ask about their baby.

Vince opened his mouth to respond just as the nurse came back in with a clipboard in hand. The nurse had wavy red hair and freckles.

"You are going to be fine, sweetie. Just take it easy is all," the nurse began with a little smile.

"And the baby?" Vince asked warily, squeezing his girlfriend's hand lightly.

Orwell swore she didn't hear that right. "Wait, Vince, h-how did you know about the baby?"

"When they brought you in, they had to do some blood work," the vigilante paused, a solid frown now on his face. "You knew? Baby, why didn't you tell me?"

"I took the pregnancy test this morning, Vince," the pregnant blogger paused, clearing her throat weakly. "I was going to tell you when we got home."

_Just like I was going to propose_, Vince thought to himself. He just kissed his girlfriend's hand before they both looked over at the red headed nurse.

The nurse, Eleanor, smiled rather sadly at the expectant couple. "The baby is alive, but its very weak at this stage. We're not very sure how long the baby will survive."

Orwell covered her mouth with a free hand, on the verge of sobbing. "What do we do?" she asked weakly.

Eleanor sighed, pressing the clipboard to her chest. "Like I said, just take it easy. There is no guarantee of its survival." She paused, turning directly to Vince this time. "You may take her home, but do not on _any _circumstances let her out of your sight. She needs bed rest, and a lot of it."

The vigilante looked over at his girlfriend. She had turned away from the nurse and toward him. With her hand in his, Vince strummed a thumb against the back of her hand. "Will do," he spoke softly to the red head.

Eleanor frowned sadly at her pregnant patient. "Unfortunately, due to the pregnancy, we can't give her anything for anxiety attacks, or for pain."

"It's okay," Orwell began quietly. She looked down at her stomach with a sad smile. "As long as I know it's helping our baby, I don't care about the medication."

"Take good care of that one, 'kay?" the nurse said to Vince, worry lines crinkling her forehead.

The vigilante watched his partner trace circles into her flat stomach. This was going to be really hard for her; Vince could tell. "I will," he looked up, but by that time, the nurse was gone.

***The Cape***

By Christmas morning, Orwell was starting to cheer up. She was still really clingy, but she was coming around. Vince never left her side for more than five minutes, and for that his girlfriend was really thankful for.

When they opened presents, the vigilante saw a light in the brunette's eyes that he hadn't seen since before she was kidnapped. Right then he decided was the perfect time to propose.

-0-

Orwell leaned against her boyfriend's shoulder, shredded wrapping paper at their feet. Her right leg was in a thick cast, and she had bandages over the backsides of her hands.

Vince grinned down at her very lightly. "Hey, Orwell, I've got something to ask you."

"Can it wait? I'm a little tired," the brunette asked, lifting her head to meet with the vigilante's eyes.

"Well, I kinda want to ask you now," her boyfriend began, a chuckle escaping his lips.

"Mm. Okay then," Orwell sat up and turned her body towards the vigilante.

Vince got up, pulling the black velvet box out of his pocket. His girlfriend eyed the box suspiciously, her eyes sparkling back at him with unshed tears.

"Vince, what's in the box?" the brunette asked.

"You'll see," the vigilante began, a grin playing at his lips. He took his girlfriend's battered left hand in his and dropped down to one knee.

Orwell's brown eyes began to tear up more and more. She blinked once and it all spilt down her cheeks.

Vince chuckled again, nervously. "I had all of this rehearsed for yesterday night, but…" he smirked a bit, squeezing his girlfriend's hand. With his free hand, he popped open the top of the velvet box. As he showed it to Orwell, she stared ahead, wide eyed. She was having trouble breathing at this point.

"Jamie Melanie Fleming, will you marry me?" the vigilante gave her a hopeful smile.

"Of course I will, Vince," Orwell began breathlessly, nodding.

Her fiancée grinned, slipping the ring onto her finger. They looked down at the brunette's hand, her diamond's shine bouncing off the Christmas tree lights.

The brunette was soon swept off of the couch and into Vince's arms. She placed her hands on either side of the vigilante's face and began a slow kiss with him.

Vince plopped down on the couch, continuing the kiss with his fiancée. He smiled at her when they broke apart a bit. "Do you know how much I'm in love with you?"

"A lot?" Orwell asked with a playful smirk.

"More than you could ever know," the vigilante paused to kiss the pregnant brunette again. "I was so worried about you, baby. Having to spend any number of hours without you is the worst torture _ever_."

"Well I'm here right now," the blogger replied with a little smile.

Vince wrapped an arm around Orwell, mindful of her battered body. "Yes you are," he placed a hand on her flat stomach and leaned his forehead against hers. "And so is this one."

The brunette sniffled into her fiancée's cheek "Do you really think so, Vince?"

"We gotta keep positive, sweetie," the vigilante placed a kiss on her temple. "We'll go back to the doctor's in a week and they'll tell us that our little baby boy or girl is just hanging out in there."

Orwell smiled lightly. "Merry Christmas, Vince."

Vince ducked his head and caught his fiancée's lips with his. "Merry Christmas to you, Orwell."

-0-

Luckily for Vince and Orwell, their Christmas prayers were answered. About nine months later, the blogger gave birth to a very healthy baby boy, Michael Vincent Faraday.

Parker was sent to Owl Island for attempted murder and Orwell became fully in charge of ARK Corporation. Michael, often times than not, went to work with Mommy and Daddy. He was known as a Christmas miracle throughout the building.

Orwell and Vince were married a few months before Michael was born. When the two welcomed their son into the world, it seemed that their relationship only became stronger, if such thing was possible.

**So, now that you have a full look at my horror, what d'ya think? Not too bad I hope. **


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